Monogamy works well for some but not others. Social status, religion, race, sexual orientation, and political philosophy don’t matter. Honesty, openness, love, commitment, communication, patience, and egalitarianism do.
Here I pass along what I’ve learned and teach at events on common challenges polyamorists encounter and their practical remedies, along with thoughts on related subjects such as community organizing, activism, and sexual freedom. Feel free to comment – and welcome!

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Polyamory - It's Not Just for Baby Boomers Anymore

In his most recent entry at Polyamory in the News, Alan quotes a college student: "Every time I turn around, I feel like more of my peers are entering open relationships." A 30-something family member of mine said the very same to me just a few days ago. Then Alan gives us a rundown of the latest poly news from college campuses. He also includes the following quote and comment:

"This is my poly dream: that every college student in America will know the word polyamory and what it means within five years." So declared Diana Adams at a Loving More conference 4¼ years ago. Since then, more progress has happened in this direction than I expected. As the poly universe grows, its average age is certainly trending down.

I, too, witnessed Diana's passionate declaration that day. Are we approaching our cultural tipping point, or is it maybe not too far down the road? Time will tell. It's very exciting to think about that, it's what I've been committed to helping facilitate for a long time now, remarking from time to time that the completion of the societal legitimization of alternatives to traditional monogamy lies in the hands of younger generations. It's exciting to see that TNGers continue to find their voices and to be able to be a witness to that myself. More and more they are taking their power in hand and, in so doing, making a difference for all of us.

5 comments:

Yesterday I looked at the timeline that a bunch of polyamory leaders created during a leadership summit - one of the things on the "future" side of the timeline was a major tv show (reality or fiction) about polyamory. Granted, the prediction was 2 years off (2010), it's still amazing progress :)

I remember at the summit where we were brainstorming and thinking really big and creating the timeline to document what had gone before and what we hoped to see happen in the future. How wonderful to think about making comparisons to it and see progress. It would be fascinating to analyze it for changes at five years and ten years.

Al of the people in my poly family are between the ages of 19-25. The 19 year old grew up in a family with poly parents. We are excited to be part of educating others and I persoanlly am helping to start a poly education group in our town. (In the belt buckle of the bible belt no less...)

My husband and are poly rookies - totally in the closet and we will stay that way for a very long time, if not forever. However, we've gotten through the initial rough patches and we're enjoying our new life together, and with our other significant others. We feel like we are living life to the fullest (oh and we're in our 30s, as that applies to your post!)

Anita's Liberal Identity:

According to this fun test, I am a Reality-Based Intellectualist, also known as the liberal elite. I am a proud member of what’s known as the reality-based community, where science, reason, and non-Jesus-based thought reign supreme.